Audio-Technica VM95C Dual Moving Magnet Cartridge with Conical Bonded Stylus Blue

Now before I start I will add that I am no an audiophile and don’t fully understand the concept of spending thousands of pounds on a hi fi system, which is as only as good as your ears and your mind tell you that it is and the more people spend, the greater perception of quality and that you get more for what you pay. There are probably audio differences if you put the signals through an analyser and look at the frequency curves and detail, but for the everyday person, this is irrelevant.Good material is key. Playing a worn out record will sound crap on any system, as would a stylus/arm that was not correctly set up. You need four things for good results from your record collection.1. Records are clean. Get yourself a manual rotational cleaner with some good solution or make your own with deionised water/ isopropanol solution.2. Ensure records aren’t too worn or badly damaged with loads of surface scratches3. Buy a protractor template for your turntable from eBay, usually £25, but money well spent as it tracks you stylus across the whole record and sets it up perfectly.4. Stylus scales. Forget the arm floating center and turning the counter weight at the end. Spend another £10 on a digital scale and get it spot on. This one loves 2g. If you have anti skate, set it also at 2g.So for £35 you have the perfect set up tools for your turntable.I have had many turntables and head shells are cartridges and styli, from bargain basement to jico stylus and I will be totally honest. Set any cartridge up correctly and it will sound good. You don’t need to spend big to get a rewarding sound. It is psychological.This is the best £29 that I have ever spent. I was going to get an Audio Technica AT3600l, which is even cheaper at about £18. But I have already had the AT91 orange stylus model and that was good too, although a little sibilant, which could have been my fault, as I came pre installed on a deck and I never got around to checking in for alignment.The sound is amazing, clear and detailed. Presenting a level representation of what Is being played. Bass is accurate with no flab and the mid range is clear and not extended, along with the treble that presents just the right amount of top end with no over brightness. In all honesty the blue one is all you need. I have a good amp, deck and speakers and play good source material that is clean.Forget the rest of the range, unless you want the one for playing 78’s. Save your money and buy more vinyl. Used out of the box is perfect. Just hit the buy button and don’t forget to align properly with the correct tools. I am speechless for the quality for the price

I purchased this to replace a Rega Carbon as it was getting difficult to get genuine styli. The ATVM range are a great set of cartridges, and all have the same head. Once fitted, and after a few hours of playing, I was pleasantly surprised by the sound quality for a conical stylus on my ATLP3x. I've never understood why they shipped these turntables with an AT91R and not this cartridge?! Overall a great cartridge at a good price. Definitely genuine as well. Once fitted if you decide to take the next step, you simply have to upgrade the stylus to elliptical or all the way to the top.

it's ok for the cash the good thing is you can upgrade the stylus which is what i did two days after getting it the conicle is very dull sounding, just get the eliptical or nude you only save a couple of quid but the difference is night and day i will use this stylus on old scratchy records but it is not a quality sounding stylus

Excellent cartridge and basic stylus. Bought to check out an old turntable I’d been gifted but needed a new cartridge. Cartridge easy to install as it has captive threads and comes with 2 lengths of screw to suit your tone arm. 8mm screw was fine for the rega arm on my deck.Have to admit i didn’t expect it to perform as well as it does. Don’t get me wrong this is no giant killer but it really sounds way more musical than it should for the price. If you have an old deck you want to revive you can’t go far wrong with this.

This was purchased to update and replace the original cartridge and stylus on my Dual CS-430 from the 1980's. I have just completed the set up which was easier than expected. I have just listened to a full album side through headphones at quite a high volume. This product has less distortion than the original it tracks cleanly and has improved the sound quality of my old turntable highs are crisp and clear yet there is still a warmth to the sound. In short yes I can recommend this product to anyone thinking of purchasing this as a replacement on an existing setup.

Can’t go wrong with AT cartridges. Nice price and good service.

I have a vm95e on my other half's turntable. Due to no longer being happy with the generic AT110e styluses I'd had the last twice for the discontinued cart that came with my turntable, I decided to go with the ultra cheap VM95C stylus that was fitted. Apart from a noticeable volume drop I can't fully make up with the pre amp alone, I'm pretty happy with this conical stylus on the VM95. Increasing my amp volume makes it sound pretty much as it did before. I'm pretty sure I'm getting less inner groove distortion too with this cart and stylus.I'm no audiophile, I have no doubt the elliptical version is better, but I'm happy. Less wear on my records, longer lasting styli, that's what you're meant to get, and I don't necessarily hear any real difference on my non high end setup, other than a few dbs of volume. Very happy with another successful Audio Technica purchase for my turntable.

Purchased this cartridge to use for my older vinyl rather than using the AT-VM95E.Fitted to a new headshell rather than just changing the stylus.Very happy with the quality and the price.Can now play my older Vinyl by changing headshell.no need to alter tracking force.Also Conical stylus is ideal for playing my mono records.Replacement stylus also the cheapest in the VM range.Really like the sound of this cartridge/stylus.